Southampton 3-2 West Brom: Saints hold off Baggies fightback as Tonda Eckert continues impressive start

Tonda Eckert continued his impressive start as Southampton manager as the Saints held off a West Bromwich Albion fightback to win 3-2 at St Mary’s.

Championship top scorer Adam Armstrong scored twice before half-time to take his tally to 11 after Leo Scienza set the hosts on their way with an early goal.

The Baggies put up a second-half fight through goals from Karlan Grant and Nathaniel Phillips and went close to a late leveller but have now lost their last seven away games.

Eckert said “The very positive thing is that if you have those home games and they become tight towards the end, that you also have a crowd that can bring the game over the line for you.”

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Match action

With such a dismal record on the road, Southampton was not the trip Ryan Mason would have wanted to be making on a windswept Tuesday in December.

Eckert had won all of his three home games in charge of the Saints and they tore into Mason’s side.

Armstrong had already stung the palms of Joe Wildsmith before Saints led in the 12th minute through Scienza.

The goal was made by former Albion winger Tom Fellows, who drove through the heart of midfield from within his own half before feeding Scienza to finish clinically into the far corner.

Saints owner Dragan Solak was in the stands to watch over his new manager and soon saw the night get better as Armstrong doubled the lead five minutes later.

A mistake from West Brom’s Krystian Bielik which allowed Armstrong to steal possession and finish emphatically past Wildsmith.

Mason’s side were looking shellshocked but did carve out a rare chance when Grant found some space down the left and curled the ball beyond the far post.

Saints threatened each time they went forward and more great work from Scienza set up Caspar Jander to shoot, but his effort flew over.

It seemed only a matter of time before Saints scored again, and Armstrong added his seventh goal in six games as he latched on to Finn Azaz’s disguised pass to again finish into the far corner.

Leo Scienza opened the scoring for Southampton
(Andrew Matthews/PA)

Second half

The small group of travelling supporters booed their side off at half-time.

The pace of the game slowed in the second period as Southampton dominated possession and the Baggies sat behind the ball.

Grant was West Brom’s best player and scored just after the hour mark as he cut in from the left and struck low into the far corner to give the away side hope.

Ten minutes from time, Mason’s side threatened from successive corners, with Gavin Bazunu saving brilliantly from Bielik and Ryan Manning clearing Jayson Molumby’s effort off the line.

But with four minutes left Phillips nodded in from Mikey Johnston’s corner to ensure a nervy ending for the home side.

Samuel Iling-Junior missed a glorious chance to equalise at the death when he somehow put Johnston’s cross wide of the post and Saints survived.

Tuesday’s Championship results

Blackburn Rovers 1-1 Oxford United

Charlton Athletic 1-2 Middlesbrough

Preston North End 1-1 Coventry City

Sheffield United 1-1 Norwich City

Southampton 3-2 West Bromwich Albion

Swansea City 1-0 Portsmouth

Watford 1-1 Sheffield Wednesday

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